Watching
by Wowzer313
Summary: Kagome's thoughts as she watches, enchanted, over someone who has finally come along. I just wanted her to watch HIM for a change!


Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, Rumiko Takahashi does.

Kagome groaned softly as consciousness roused her from her slumber. She was so warm, that for a moment, she thought she was back at home in her own room, buried under the layers of her thick, downy comforters. The numbness in her left side, however, told her differently.

The two feelings, numbness and absolute warmth so strongly contradicted one another that the semi-conscious girl was hard-pressed to remember where she was. Groggily, she swiped her hand over her face and moved to sit up, but found that she couldn't. There was something heavy draped over her. Finally, unable to derive anything useful from the information that her sleep-logged brain was giving her, she reluctantly cracked one eye to give her vision a try at helping her.

Almost immediately, Kagome's mind recollected her situation. A smile quirked her lips as she recognized the chest against which she lay, including the rather heavy arm that was draped rather intimately over her waist, the fingers of the hand brushing ever so lightly against her lower back as she breathed. She knew that that night, they had passed a milestone of sorts, crossed a boundary. Crossed the 'I-do-love-you-but-I'm-embarrassed-to-show-it' barrier. The 'What-will-the-others-think' barrier. The 'I-want-to-show-you-some-type-of-emotion-but-if-I-do-people-will-think-I'm-weak' barrier. She understood that. She understood his hesitance, and even to a point, appreciated it. It was endearing, if anything. Kagome had to admit, if only to herself, that even she had been unsure of how exactly to show her feelings. Sure, she had always been the one to show the most affection, if only with holding his hand occasionally, pulling him into the rare, yet cherished hug, or surreptitiously smoothing strands of his hair through her fingers as she rode on his back, the last being for her own personal enjoyment. But this…

This was another thing entirely. This was a blatant show of affection, a sign for all of their friends to see, as they'd done it right in Kaede's hut. Not that it had been on purpose or anything… Kagome's lips twitched into a full blown grin at the memory of the events that led up to her current position.

Finals. The name used to describe the two-week long torturous process strategically designed to weed out the strong from the weak, the brave from the cowardly, and the early-studiers from the crammers. Kagome was definitely…somewhere in between. She'd tried to study early, really she had…but Feudal Japan was not exactly the library, and between juggling her bow and arrows, a lately temperamental kitsune, fighting the hordes of demons after the jewel shards, and exploring a budding, if not somewhat shy relationship with an even shyer hanyou, Calculus I-II was definitely taking to the back burner of her life. She couldn't complain though. At least the Kikyou issue was resolved, freeing hands and hearts to start said relationship.

While Kagome had never verbally told him to choose, she had, on occasion, tried to tell him telepathically. That, of course, had never worked. She'd tried body language and pointed looks whenever the woman was mentioned, and even clearing her throat whenever the undead priestess came around. But Inuyasha was never one to pick up on classy subtlety. So all of those things had never worked either. In the end, however, it took no prodding on Kagome's part. It was Inuyasha, surprisingly, who had reached the monumental, if not long overdue, decision to free himself, and to _live_ with the _living_. It was quite beautiful, really, and tactful, Kagome had to admit, the way he carried himself the last time she'd come around. He was somber and quiet, not quite brooding, but close. She'd hidden in the shadows just beyond one of our campsites, her soul catchers beckoning silently, entreating him to follow them to their mistress. He didn't follow. At least, not at first. He sat quietly, staring absently into the fire, while Sango, Miroku and Shippo exchanged worried glances. The soul catchers had made them all nervous. Kagome watched Inuyasha out of the corner of her eye, as she pretended to flip through a magazine.

"Inuyasha…?" Sango said hesitantly. He snapped out of his daze. As the girl expected, he stood. She felt the pang of renewed heartbreak shoot through her, but made a valiant effort not to show it on her face. 'If he would just go, that would be great. If he would just go, then it can just be over with sooner…Just go, Inuyasha, dammit! Just go!' she thought furiously. He wasn't going. He just continued to stand there, while the eerie soul catchers drifted weightlessly about the surrounding trees. Kagome felt the prickling of the skin that you get when you're being stared at. Jerkily, she looked up, only to find Inuyasha's gaze focused on her with a startling intensity. 'Why is he looking at me like that? Oh, for Kami's sake, Inuyasha, stop looking at me like th—'

"Kagome?" he said softly. "Kagome, will you come with me?" he asked. To say that she was shocked would be like saying the sun was a bit warm. He had almost startled the girl into a myocardial infarction, and she suddenly found it very difficult to breath.

"Uh…oh—okay," she wheezed, and clumsily stumbled to her feet. She dusted off her jeans, having long ago realized how impractical and uncomfortable it was to fight vicious demons in her uniform. She straightened her baby tee with shaking hands, completely flustered, her mind running a mile a minute, and getting nowhere fast as the boy of her dreams continued to stare at her with that unreadable expression. When she was situated, he solemnly moved forward towards the soul catchers beyond the clearing. As soon as they were shrouded by the dense forest, Inuyasha lightly grabbed her hand, and when she stared at him, eyes bugging out of her skull, he offered her a small, shy smile as they continued forward. Kagome's heart felt as though it were hammering though her sternum. With every pump, her bones seemed to rattle, and she was positive that if he couldn't feel the blood pounding through the veins in her hand, he could surely hear the muscle knocking against her ribs.

They finally reached her. Kikyou was leaned against a tree as, Kagome noted, seemed to be her favorite position to be found in.

"Inuyasha. I'm so—what is _she_ doing here?" Kikyou's voice practically dripped with disdain. He ignored the question.

"Kikyou…I need you to listen to me," he said. Kagome couldn't help but openly stare at him. He hadn't relinquished his hold on her hand, and she'd never heard him like he was now. He'd never sound so….mature. "I need you to listen, and hopefully…and hopefully understand." He took a deep breath.

"What is the meaning of this? I don't want to hear—"

"Please let me talk, Kikyou? Please?" he implored. "I…I need to finish. I sensed that you might have come this time to…to collect. But I need to tell you…I…I don't want to go to Hell with you," he said flatly. Kagome had to bite her tongue to hold in her gasp. She didn't want to shock Inuyasha out of whatever mindset he'd fallen into. Kikyou's face hardened and she scowled.

"Is it her? My reincarnation? Is she the reason you choose not to fulfill your duty to me?" she questioned coldly.

"She…she's a big reason, yes," he admitted, gaze falling to the forest floor. Kagome bit her tongue harder, and contorted her face to not show the smile and release the joyous laughter that was threatening to bubble forth. 'Me? _I'm_ a big reason? Yes! _Me_! _I'm_ a _big_ reason! A reason! A _big_ one!' she thought elatedly.

Inuyasha took another deep breath. "But it's also for me. Naraku is dead, Kikyou. I—_We_ killed him. And I think I've avenged you. I think I've paid my debt."

"It matters not what _you_ think, Inuyasha. _You_ are responsible. _You_ must take responsibility for the things that _you_ have caused." Inuyasha squeezed Kagome's hand. She wasn't sure whether it was intentional and he was asking her to lend him her support, or if it was simply a reflex, a flinch from Kikyou's words. Either way, she squeezed back, offering the only comfort she could give right then, knowing how difficult this was for him.

"I understand how you can think that, Kikyou. I do. But…_I_ didn't kill you. Naraku did. I've offered you protection, and I don't regret doing that, because I think it's what you're owed. I've avenged your death, and I don't regret that either, because I think that's fair. But…but I can't give you my life or my death. I _won't_ give you that. My life is _mine_. And…And I want to live," he finished. His hand tightened around Kagome's even further, and his thumb brushed against hers once. She was beginning to think that she might have to set up a doctor's appointment, because her heart had seized up at least fifteen times in the past seven minutes, and she was pretty sure that wasn't healthy.

"If that is all that you think I am owed…I suppose I shall continue on, shortchanged," the miko said coldly, if not a bit desolately.

"I don't want you to feel like that, Kikyou. I care for you, you know that…but…we weren't in love. You can't tell me truthfully that you loved me, as I can't do the same for you. We both were in need of companionship. I…I can't tell you how sorry I am that you suffered so much…I don't want you to feel shorted, Kikyou. I want you to be at peace," he implored to her. She cocked an eyebrow.

"Then it shall be." And with that, she imploded. Kagome couldn't think of any other way to describe what happened, other than the clay that made up her body cracked in long, jagged lines. Through the cracks, white lights shone brightly, and a few brilliance blue balls of light escaped. "Free!" a voice said, sweet and clear, and Kagome realized that it must have been the voice of the old Kikyou, one untransformed by bitterness and hate. The clay crumbled, and with that, thousands of blue lights swarmed around them, and then floated off into the night.

Not a word was said for a long moment. Kagome didn't feel it was her place to break the silence, so she counted. She reached one hundred and twenty-six before Inuyasha scooped her into a smothering, albeit deliciously warm, hug. His arms wrapped tightly around her shoulders, and his cheek touched hers.

"Kagome?" he whispered feverishly in her ear, his breath tickling her. "Kagome, are you okay with this?" he asked. He was trembling. 'He's afraid,' she realized with a start. "I need to know if you're okay with this, because I l-love you…I've loved you for a long time—I just wasn't free to say it," he murmured, his voice confessional in its tone. He tensed considerably, awaiting her reply. She was breathless, speechless, and a whisper away from senseless. "Please," she heard him utter in a hoarse voice. At that, she struggled to free her arms, and then didn't hesitate to wrap them around his neck.

"Inuyasha, are _you_ okay? This…this is so… _big_," she said, squeezing him. He sighed.

"I'm fine. Everything I said, everything that was done, needed to be said and done for a long time…" He pulled back a bit and looked into her eyes. "Granted, I'd be a lot better if you would answer my damn question," he said sardonically. Kagome smiled and nodded.

"Yes. I'm okay with this. I love you too, Inuyasha. So much. You know that right?" she asked. He nodded slowly before holding her close once more.

"Thank you," she thought she heard him whisper, but she thought maybe she'd imagined it. "We'd better get back to camp…before everyone starts to worry," he said, somewhat reluctantly. He eyed her curiously, each still wrapped in the other's arms. A tiny smile tugged at the left corner of his mouth. A shy smile. Kagome smiled back brilliantly. "Can I…Can I court you, Kagome?" he asked timidly. His ears were lowered, and he averted his eyes. Her jaw dropped. 'This has got to be…the absolute _best _night of my _life_!' she thought ecstatically.

Then, she did the worst possible thing she could have done at that moment. She laughed. It wasn't just your ordinary 'he-he, ha-ha' laugh. It was a gut-busting, headache-inducing, lung-clenching laugh that had her bent over from the force of it. When Inuyasha immediately yanked away from her, and gave her the most horrified, heart-broken look she'd ever seen on him, she instantaneously stopped and rushed to apologize.

"Oh, Kami, Inuyasha, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it like that, really! I'm sorry, I'm just so damned _happy_! I…I never in a million years thought that you'd want to—or that you'd ask me that. I'm sorry; I didn't mean to laugh like that—yes. Yes, of course you can court me," she hurriedly explained herself. He still looked a bit unsure and a bit wounded. She smiled slyly. "Can _I_ court _you_?" she asked playfully. At that, he grinned, and laughed a bit. He ducked his head and nodded.

"Anytime." He took her hand, and they made their way back to camp.

Of course, he'd immediately let go of her hand as soon as they crossed the trees, which disappointed Kagome a bit. But he did sit next to her at the fire.

That had been a month ago. As she prepared to close out her final year of high school, the normally gruff and surly hanyou she'd come to know and love so much had grown into a sweet, charming, at times shy, yet companionable young man that she loved even more. It was as though a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders, and now that it was gone, he was free to be…well, free. It seemed that having a steady, surefire relationship with Kagome had allowed Inuyasha to be more than the jaded, emotionally barricaded hellion he'd been known to be.

Oh, sure, he still had his moments. No matter how much he and Kagome's closeness had tempered his random spurts of misdirected anger, he still had one fiery temper, and a mouth to match. 'But if he didn't, I guess he wouldn't be my Inuyasha,' she thought fondly.

She shook her head. She didn't know how many times she'd played that scene in her mind: over and over and over again. Probably because it was a night she'd cherish for the rest of her life. She loved the way he'd looked at her, how open and honest he'd been, how insanely adorable…

So anyway. Finals. They'd snuck up on her, honestly, because she'd forgotten all about them until Souta reminded her, because her friends had reminded him. She had to pass—she'd fail her senior year if she didn't, and that was simply not an option—not with all the bitching and moaning she had to put up with from Inuyasha about taking tests!

Even still, with their relationship being as new as it was, only two weeks old, she hadn't wanted to leave him—not for a moment. But it was a necessary evil. She wasn't quite sure how Inuyasha would take the news: that she needed to leave for two weeks. She decided to breach the subject while they were alone, as those were the times when he'd be the most affectionate, and therefore, open, to suggestion.

One particularly mild summer evening, she seized her opportunity. Inuyasha announced to the rest of the group that he was going to fish. Kagome looked up from her Calculus book and he caught her eye. He gave her a pointed look, that no one else caught, and she gave a barely perceptible nod.

"Oh, gee!" she exclaimed, jabbing a finger into the air, as if she had the most brilliant idea ever. "Look, guys, we're really low on firewood—Don't worry, I'll go get some!" she said quickly, and walked briskly out of the hut.

"But, Kagome we have plenty—" she heard Sango say. She pretended not to hear and jogged into the woods, looking for her favorite person in the world. She looked about, searching for that gaudy red outfit and shock of white hair.

"Inuyasha?" she called. "Inuyasha, where are you?" She wandered aimlessly, calling for him. When he failed to materialize in front of her, she began to pout. "Get me out here, and don't even show yourself…Jerk," she muttered, not really angry. Suddenly she was grabbed from behind, arms wrapping around her waist. She yelped, surprised, but promptly quieted down at the sight of the bright red sleeves.

"Who's a jerk?" he asked playfully. She wiggled out of his grasp and shoved him in the chest.

"You are! Disappearing like that, and then scaring the crap out of me!" she laughed. He grinned and held out his hand.

"Come on, let's go to the stream," he suggested. She took his hand and happily followed him.

Once they reached the stream, Inuyasha promptly sat on the bank and took off his red coat. He rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt, and stared intently into the water. With reflexes quicer than her eyes could register, his arms snapped forward, and then shot back, holding a fat, shiny, quivering trout, which he then threw onto the bank next to him to die from lack of water. Kagome shook her head and sat behind him, so that she was facing away from him. She smiled, pressing her back into his playfully. He pushed back. She pushed again. He locked arms with her at the elbow and pushed back. She laughed and tried to push him forward, but found that she couldn't, and that he had her quite securely pinned, her nose almost touching her knees.

"Okay, okay! I give, I give!" she gasped, laughing. He chuckled and let her up, though she continued to lean lazily against him.

"You ought to know by now, that I always, _always_, win," he schooled her, and she didn't have to see his face to know he was smirking.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…" she conceded defeat. They sat in silence for a while, save Inuyasha's periodic splash-fishing, simply enjoying each other's quiet companionship and the warmth of the sun, shining dappled through the trees. "Hey, Inuyasha?" she began. It was now or never.

"Hn?" he grunted. His response vibrated his back, something she could feel in her chest.

"I have some tests to take."

"Oh. Okay. How long you gonna be gone? Two days? Three?" he asked mildly.

"Um…twmhmmmn…." she muttered.

"Huh? Twmhmmmn? Oh, okay, that shouldn't be a problem," he laughed.

"No…two weeks," she said clearer. She could feel him stiffen.

"Two weeks? _Two weeks?_ Kagome, that's _crazy_!" he exclaimed. She shuffled around to his side. He looked at her incredulously.

"I know, I know, but they're big tests!"

"You say that all the time! They're always 'big tests'! Stupid, more like!" he huffed. Kagome bristled.

"They aren't stupid!"

"They _are_ stupid! They're fucking dumb! Everything you got in those books is useless, and you know it!"

"My books are _not_ usel—okay…maybe Calculus is a bit useless…physics, too…man, government isn't much better…" she admitted.

"See? I'm right!"

"It doesn't matter if I think they're useless or stupid or whatever else. I _have_ to take these tests. I have to graduate!" Inuyasha's ears drooped, and he pouted.

"Two weeks, though? Why does it take two weeks? I mean, if it takes you that long to finish a test, you obviously don't know shit about the subject, and you're gonna fail it anyway, so what's the point?" he asked, obviously perplexed. Kagome couldn't help but laugh at that, even if she did wonder if he was insulting her in a vaguely indirect way…

"It doesn't two weeks for just one test. I've got seven classes. I've got to take a week to study—something I don't get to do while I'm here, and then I take the actual finals the second week," she explained through her residual giggles. Inuyasha didn't find if funny in the least.

"But…two _weeks_? Kagome…" he whined pathetically. His eyes begged her to understand what he couldn't say. She sighed, realizing the problem, and deciding that she could live with that.

"Will you miss me?" she asked. He blushed hotly, but nodded all the same. She smiled. "I'll miss you too…But just think of it this way: when—or, let's say _if_, I pass these exams, I'll be all done with high school. Then comes college, but I can take online courses, I don't have to go home nearly as much, okay? I'll be able to spend more time with you. But _only_ if I pass these exams, okay?"

"Can't I come with you?" he asked innocently.

"I have to _study_, Inuyasha. I have to _concentrate_."

"I'll be quiet!" he insisted. She gave him a look. "What? I will!"

"Inuyasha…you and the whole 'quiet' thing? Except for when you're sneaking around, it doesn't really work out," she told him. "Plus…you'll distract me…with your devilishly good looks. I won't be able to study at all," she teased. He smiled a bit, and then sighed heavily.

"Two weeks?" She nodded. "Fourteen days? No more, right?" She nodded again. "Oh…" He clenched those beautiful yellow eyes closed and faced the sky, thinking. "…Okay…" he muttered reluctantly. She smiled at him and grabbed his hand. He squeezed. "But your ass better study hard, 'cause I want you all to myself after this, got it?" he said. She shook her head, giggling, and hugged him.

"Okay. I promise, I'll study my hardest," she assured him.

It hadn't been easy. The studying, the late-nights, the finals, the being away from her hanyou, who was very well-behaved, and had only come through the well three times: once to bring her a forgotten physics notebook, again to 'make sure she was staying out of trouble' and once more to ask her if she was sure she'd need a full two weeks. All in all, he did a very good job.

But she'd managed to do it. She'd almost pulled her hair out on the last page of her Calculus exam, but she'd finished. And after waiting an agonizingly long thirty minutes, she made a beeline to the computer to check her grades online. 'All passing!' she thought with a huge smile. 'I am _so_ proud of myself!' She decided to drop by the store, and then head home—she figured a couple extra flats of ramen would do her hanyou good, especially since he'd been so well behaved.

"Mama! I'm home! And even better? I passed! I passed every single class! Isn't that amazing?" She called into her home.

"I know, Dear, I'm so proud of you!" her mother gushed, and welcomed her with a warm, well-deserved hug. "Now, I've got your bag all packed and ready to go, okay? So why don't you go see your friends? You deserve a little R&R," her mother insisted. Kagome whole-heartedly agreed, and took a hot shower and changed into jeans and a t-shirt before lugging her monstrous bag to the well house.

"I can't wait to see you, Inuyasha," she whispered with a smile, and took the leap.

She had fully been expecting to see Inuyasha's face peeking over the lip of the well, his hand extended, ready to pull her bag out for her. Instead, there were three faces, Shippo, Miroku, and Sango stood, ready to greet her.

"Kagome!" her friend cried. The demon slayer enveloped her friend in a hug. "It's so good to see you! We've all missed you so much!" she said enthusiastically.

"Truly we have," Miroku agreed. Shippo stood off to the side, fidgeting.

"Shippo? Did you miss me too?" Kagome asked with a sly smile. He nodded hesitantly before bounding mirthfully into her embrace. She pulled out the giant sucker she'd bought for him, and the boy went to work eagerly. "So, you guys? Um….where's Inuyasha?" she asked casually, as they made the trek to Kaede's hut.

"We were thinking maybe you could tell us. We haven't seen him in days," Sango admitted.

"He actually hasn't been around much since you left, Kagome," Miroku added. The girl sighed.

"I hope he's not upset…"

"I'm truly surprised that he let you go at all," Sango said.

"As was I, Kagome…which leads me to ask: did you have to do any…extra curricular _convincing_ to persuade Inuyasha to agree to such terms?" Miroku asked, waggling his eyebrows roguishly. Kagome swatted his arm.

"No!" she exclaimed, too embarrassed and blushing too hotly to come up with any decent retort.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Miroku pleaded with a laugh. She rolled her eyes.

"Believe me, I was surprised too," she said. She smiled to herself. Despite Miroku's comment, Kagome knew that the other two still weren't any the wiser about the change between herself and Inuyasha. Kagome had never thought herself to be that great of an actress, but, hey, things were looking up.

She put her things away in Kaede's hut, and after helping the old woman separate herbs, she decided it was time to look for the boy she missed so much. She figured the best place to look first was the Sacred Tree. It had always been 'they're little spot', even before they had become 'official'. She sighed her frustration. 'I've been gone for two weeks. _Two weeks_! And he can't even meet me at the well? Ooohh, Inuyasha, if you weren't so damn adorable, I swear, I'd—' All thoughts of violent acts toward said hanyou dissipated completely at the sight that greeted her. Her hands flew up to clamp over her mouth. At the base of the tree was her hanyou, sitting Indian-style as was his usual. He held a large bouquet of dusty orange azaleas in his lap, along with a rather modern looking, gift-wrapped box. Scattered around the tree were lit candles—her vanilla scented candles, that she loved so much, in small rounded dishes. In the setting sun, it was quite beautiful, if a bit odd.

"What took you so long?" he asked, a teasing smirk twisting his lips. He stood. Her lack of words and wide eyes made him worry. "Um…what…what's wrong?" he asked. His dejected sigh made her refocus. "You hate it, don't you? I…I'm sorry…it's too much, isn't it?"

"No!" she exclaimed, a bit louder than necessary. "I mean, no. No, it's not too much…It's perfect…but…what's it for?" she asked, wonder lacing her voice.

"Congratulations," he said simply, shrugging.

"For what?" she asked, still confused.

"You passed all your tests, didn't you?" Kagome's jaw dropped.

"How did you know that?"

"I talked to your mom…she said how happy you'd be that you passed everything…and I just wanted to do something for you…" he murmured. His face reddened. "I already had something, but your mom said that you liked candles and these um…ah-sales-yuhs…so, um…keh," he stammered. He held the flowers out to her with a stiff arm. She smiled softly, so touched by this side of him that she'd never seen before. He reminded her of Souta when he got around his little girlfriend, Hitomi. He was all straight and stiff in his presentation. His shyness and fumbling only endeared him to her more. She took the flowers from his hand, wonder written in her eyes. They were full of the light, springy fragrance that she loved so much. Even still, she was confused as to what brought about this behavior.

"Inuyasha…you…you've _never_ shown any of the slightest interest in anything having to do with my school. You've always put it down, and—"

"I know…but…I won't anymore," he interrupted.

"Why? Why the change?" She was perplexed.

"Because…it's important to you…and…you're important to me," he mumbled, looking at the ground.

"Oh, my…" Kagome breathed.

"And I missed you a lot," he admitted, holding the box in both hands. It was wrapped messily, with fingerprint smudges on the cream colored paper, and the bow tied lopsided and sagging, but she loved it. She let her fingers run over the paper, not wanting one detail of this moment to be lost; she wanted every little aspect, every nuance of his words engrained into her memory for further relishing at a later date. Very carefully, she slipped a finger under the tape holding the paper together. She peeled the wrapping back to reveal a beautiful deep blue journal, apparently made out of some sort of hardy, yet amazingly intricately woven cloth. The symbol for love wasn hand embroidered in the lower right hand corner, and it could be tied shut with two black ribbons sewn to the from and back covers.

"It's just….that other one on your shelf—I didn't read it! But…it was so worn out, and I see you writing in it all the time, so I figured you might be…running…out of…pages…" he trailed off, her silence agitating him. Kagome was at a loss for words. Who knew Inuyasha was so aware of her habits, that he even noticed the condition of her journal? 'Such a beautiful gift…' she thought in amazement. Her hanyou was truly a wonder. But he had begun to fidget, as was his nature whenever he was getting impatient of anxious. "I know wrap like shit…I'm sorry about that…and it's not much. I mean, I'm sure you get much nicer gifts from other people in your era, but I thought you might like it, but if you don't, I can always get you something better, and I'm really sorry I don't have much to offer you, Kagome, because I wanna give you—"

He was cut off by the force of Kagome's body all but flopping into his own, hugging him tightly.

"Don't _ever_ downplay what you do for me, Inuyasha. This is so _beautiful_…I can't even find words enough to thank you. I can't tell you how much this means to me," she said earnestly.

"Keh!" he wheezed, and she could practically feel the heat from his blush.

"Thank you so much, Inuyasha…I love it. I absolutely love it," she insisted.

"I absolutely love _you_," he emphasized.

"Gods, I love you too," she grinned, pulling back to look up at him. It was one of those moments suspended in time. Her heart pounded relentlessly against her ribs, and her head got light. Her stomach clenched and seemed to collapse on itself. It she hadn't been in this situation with Inuyasha before, she would have thought that either her body was preparing itself to die, or she was simply going vomit. Thankfully, prior experience had taught her that this was just the way her body reacted when in such close, intimate proximity with the object of her affections, and as completely un-sexy and un-reassuring that was to her mind, there was nothing Kagome could do to stop it. 'This is it. We're finally gonna do it…we're finally gonna kiss!' she thought excitedly.

She self-consciously wet her lips, wishing she had her Carmex, with her. 'No, Blistex, Fruit Smoothie Berry Explosion. Yeah, that smells good. And it tastes good, too!' she thought. Too bad that was in one of the many pockets of her yellow bag. She ran her tongue around her mouth, seeing how fresh it was. 'Meh, not exactly minty-fresh, but not bad,' she mused. Then again, she doubted that Inuyasha's breath would be a sparkling cloud of snowflakes and sparkles. 'What exactly do they use in the Feudal era for toothpaste anyway?' she thought. Well. She'd never actually seen anyone with a toothbrush, never mind any toothpaste. But Inuyasha's set of pearly whites were, well…pearly white. And she'd never gotten a whiff of foul breath that would hint at halitosis, so she knew he must have been doing _something _right. 'What the hell are you doing, Kagome? You're about to kiss Inuyasha, _finally_, and all you can think about is chapstick brands and oral hygiene? Get a grip! Focus, girl!' she scolded herself mentally. Inuyasha seemed to be oblivious to the flurry of irrelevant thoughts coursing through her mind, as his gaze had fallen to her mouth. His eyes darted up to meet hers.

"C-can…Can I kiss you, Kagome?" he asked. The mere fact that he was asking her nearly sent her into a full blown 'aw!' frenzy. She nodded her consent, unable to stop the tiny smile that tugged on the corners of her mouth. "Okay….here it goes," he mumbled. His face came closer, closer, and Kagome lifted onto her tiptoes higher and higher…

"Kagome! Ka-GO-maaaaaaayyyy!" Shippo's high-pitched voice called, and cut through the mood like a knife through butter.

"Fuck!" Inuyasha hissed, pulling away from the equally frustrated girl. "Do the gods hate us?" he asked her. She smiled wanly. He bent to blow out and collect the few candles he'd set up.

"Later," she promised. She held out her hand to him. He took it, and the unsatisfied couple made their way to Kaede's hut once more.

"I don't mind, you know," he said quietly.

"You don't mind what?"

"I don't mind if you….you know…show people. I mean, you were gonna put the present in your bag right away, right? So no one would see?"

"Well…only because I thought you didn't want our business out there yet—"

"I don't mind. Not anymore, at least. I mean…I'm okay with it," he told her. She smiled brilliantly at him.

"Inuyasha, you are the best boyfriend any girl could have," she told him.

"Keh," he grunted with a blush. A few moments later, Shippo bounded into view, and promptly took his place at Kagome's side.

"Kagome, everybody's been waiting for you. Dinner's ready," he informed her dutifully.

"Oh, thank you, Shippo. Thank you for coming to get me."

"You're welcome. What were you doing out there anyway?"

"I was talking to Inuyasha."

"Oh. Whaddya wanna talk to _that_ jerk for, Kagome?"

"Hey!" Inuyasha groused.

"It's true!" Shippo countered. "Inuyasha's nothing but a big dumb meanie!"

"You little—!"

"Shippo! Don't be rude! Inuyasha's not a big dumb meanie, and he's not a jerk either, okay? So stop saying things like that!" she instructed the boy. He'd been snappier than usual ever since she'd told him that it was for him to stop sleeping with her. The boy was growing up, and it was time for him to adjust. It had been almost four years since he'd come into their company, and now was the time for him venture to sleeping arrangements outside of Kagome's sleeping bag—especially since he was growing to make it uncomfortable for her to fit in it as well.

"Okay, okay, fine," he replied sulkily. Kagome patted the boy's shoulder in silent consolation, as Inuyasha stared at her with huge, disbelieving golden eyes.

"What?" she asked self consciously as they reached the entrance to Kaede's hut. Shippo went in ahead of them.

"You…you took _my_ side…" he marveled.

"Yeah…"

"You _never_ take my side," he pointed out. Kagome put a warm palm to his cheek.

"That's when you know things are changing," she said simply, and pushed aside the reed curtain to enter the hut, a very muddled hanyou staring after her.

The little shard-hunting group shared a simple meal of dried meats and boiled vegetables as Kagome updated them on what was happening in her world. She explained 'graduation' and all of the things that entailed, including her ability to spend more time with them in this era. They all offered her their congratulations on passing her tests. Pretty soon, it was time for everyone to retire. Kagome noticed that as everyone got their sleeping blankets and such together, that Inuyasha seemed to sit, stricken, if not a bit awkwardly, in the middle of the by the fire place, instead of leaving to retire to his usual post on the tree branch just outside. With him sitting in the middle of the action, it was difficult for them all to recline in the tiny space.

"Um, Inuyasha?" Sango asked.

"Yeah?"

"Are you gonna go outside now? You're kind of in the way of my blankets," she pointed out.

"Oh…uh, yeah. Sorry," he muttered embarrassedly and stood. His imposing figure standing in the middle of the small hut while everyone else lay down around him was still glaringly awkward. He seemed to be deciding on something. He finally stepped around the fire pit to Kagome's small pallet and kneeled down beside her.

"Um…Hey, Kagome?" he started timidly.

"Yeah?"

"Uh…Do you think….I mean, would you mind if…um. Keh. Shit. Would you mind if I, um, shared your… futon tonight?" he asked, the last part so quiet she had to strain to hear it. But it seemed as though everyone else in the hut had heard him loud and clear, because the rustling movements of preparing for bed had all ceased, enclosing the hut in a shroud of the most powerful silence any of them had ever experienced. Kagome's eyes widened, and her mind was functioning in high gear. 'Share my futon? My _futon_? _Share_ it?' she thought frantically. 'We…we haven't even kissed yet and he—"

"Just to sleep!" he added in a hurry with an almost fluorescent blush, seeing her frazzled expression. She immediately relaxed at his words. He glanced nervously behind him at the quartet of staring eyes. "I…I just missed you a lot….and I want to be near you," he mumbled uncomfortably. "You don't have to, I mean, it's perfectly fine if you don't—"

Kagome backed up to allow him room on her spread out sleeping bag. It wasn't really much of a futon, as it was a blanket-on-the-floor, but she understood the higher meaning. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Miroku's lecherous, suggestive smile. As if in slow motion, his mouth opened to comment, but she saw Sango's adamant gesture of a hand slicing across her neck, and shaking of a fist in an effective attempt to get him to shut up. It worked, and he closed his mouth, opting instead to just watch their relationship unfold in front of him. Inuyasha smiled appreciatively and slipped out of his red outer coat. He reclined next to her, his back to the rest of the hut.

"Here," she said softly, and maneuvered the pillow so that they could both cushion their heads on it. She hadn't really been expecting it to get any better than that, and was pretty happy with the fact that he simply said he wanted to be near her. So when he reached out an arm to slip around her waist and bring her closer to him, Kagome thought she'd died and gone to heaven. She remembered just staring up at him, his face beet red, and hers, for once, completely clear. She remembered how intimately close they'd been, awake.

"Plus, it gets kind of cold outside at night," he whispered, so that only she could hear.

"Cold? I thought hanyous didn't get cold," she teased, bringing her hands up to lay lightly against his chest.

"Well, this one does."

"I never thought you'd admit it though."

"And I won't ever admit it. At least, not to anyone but you," he confessed, a tiny smile jerking his lips.

"I'll keep your secret," she assured him with a grin.

"I know you will. You always do."

Kagome smiled widely at the memory of last night's events, the ones that had allowed her to become so close to the man at her side. They'd shifted a bit though the night, so that her head was pillowed on his shoulder as opposed to the actual pillow. One of her legs, also, had some how gotten thrown over his own, so that she was half-straddling him…she blushed at that. Some time in the night, he'd apparently pulled his coat over the two of them up to her shoulders. Even still, she had to admit that it was a nice feeling, waking up in the arms of the man she loved…who was at the moment, still dead to the world. She propped herself up on her left elbow to study him. Her eyes flicked over his face, noticing for the first time the dark circles that were underneath his eyes.

She smiled absently at the slumbering boy, reveling in how absolutely adorable he looked at the moment—not that he didn't look adorable any other time, but now…while he was in the Land of Nod, he looked especially peaceful and cherub-like. His dark brows, normally drawn into a frown were straight and relaxed, his forehead wrinkle and scowl-free. His lips were slightly open, and he was drooling on her pillow, she noticed with a restrained giggle. He was even snoring lightly: a tiny grunt when he inhaled. Unable to resist, Kagome brought up a hand to tease the heavy bangs that flopped over his forehead in their endearingly disheveled way. His hair, contrary to popular belief was actually quite fine, and was reminiscent of the hair that adorned the heads of her Barbie Dolls, soft and almost slippery to the point that it rolled like water off her fingers. 'Oh, what I wouldn't give to just brush though this stuff,' she thought yearningly. She was sure that she could talk him into sitting still long enough to do just that one day.

She pulled a few wayward strands away from where they'd fallen across his face. That action tickled him, and he wrinkled his nose cutely before settling back down with a sigh. His entire body was lax, his puppy ears even drooping, not even going about their normal attentive twitching. Unable to resist the siren's song of her not-so-secret affinity for his ears, she traced the left one with the pad of her index finger, loving how soft and warm the appendage was. She allowed her fingers to wander from his ears down to his handsome face. His skin was soft and clear, warm to the touch. Her fingers brushed over the lengths of his eyebrows, lightly danced over the thin flesh of his eyelids as his lashes gently tickled her knuckles.

"My angel," she whispered, so quiet, she could barely hear herself. "My silver-haired angel…dressed in blood red," she added sardonically. With her middle finger, Kagome gently caressed the bridge of his nose, enjoying her leisurely study of her love. She loved his nose. 'What am I talking about? I love everything about him.' It was the perfect nose, she thought. 'A little ski slope jump, right into the perfect tip,' she mused. Upon further inspection of the area just underneath his nose, she wondered if Inuyasha had ever had any facial hair besides his eyebrows. She laughed inwardly at the thought of her hanyou with a full mustache and beard, white of course. With his red outfit? He'd look almost like Santa!

Her fingers continued on, right to the spot that she had yet to become more intimately acquainted with. Secure in her knowledge that he was practically in a coma, she allowed her fingers to dance over the sensitive skin of his limps, still hanging slightly ajar. She traced his bottom lip with the tip of her pinky, and was just about to move on to study his chin when to her surprise, he emitted a very soft, yet distinct growl, and promptly caught the tip of her little finger in between his teeth. She froze. 'Oh, what the hell am I gonna do now?'

He cracked one bleary golden eye and peered at her curiously, if not a bit sleepily.

"What're ya doin'?" he asked, his voice hoarse with sleep. He didn't sound angry. Just…curious. And he still held her finger between his teeth. She smiled embarrassedly.

"Um…just…watching you." He nodded, as if that all made perfect sense, and as though holding a girl's finger in your teeth was as natural as breathing. Not relinquishing his hold on her waist, he moved his other arm into a position to grab the hand currently ensnared in his tooth-hold. Lightly gripping her hand, he kissed the pinky that he held captive, and then proceeded to kiss each finger after that. Kagome blushed, as did he. Kissing done, he moved her hand upwards, and laid his hand flat over hers, pushing her palm onto his cheek. 'Who knew he could be so gentle and sweet in the morning?' Kagome thought. 'Hell, who knew he could be so gentle and sweet period?'

"How long have you been awake for?" she winced. He shrugged.

"About since you started playin' with my nose," he grinned. "Now how often is it that you wake up before _I_ do?" he mused with a smile.

"Well, I can tell you're exhausted. You've got dark circles under your eyes."

"No surprise there. I haven't really slept in two weeks."

"Inuyasha, why? That's not good for you, you know," she scolded gently. He shrugged.

"I don't get much sleep when you're away," he confessed. Kagome didn't know if she could handle all the confessions he was suddenly so handy with. 'But I can sure as hell get used to him like this,' she thought happily, stroking his cheek with her thumb.

"You hungry?" she asked. He gave her a look that said 'No, shit'.

"Always."

"Okay. Come one, I'll make you some breakfast," she offered as they untangled themselves from one another and stood.

"Hey, Kagome? You know what else I don't get much of when you're away?"

"What's that, Inuyasha?" she asked needlessly, already knowing the answer.

"Ramen," he replied solemnly, as if he'd imparted some great wisdom on her. She laughed and hugged him, reaching up to scratch his right ear, just once.

"Come on, hungry boy. I'm gonna feed you so much ramen, you're gonna explode all over the wall," she exaggerated, laughing.

"Sounds like heaven to me!" eh said enthusiastically. "And Kagome?" She turned to him. "You're my angel too."

Author's Notes:

Okay. So this is my first piece. I'm kinda new to the whole fan fiction thing, and I'm kind of new to the whole Inuyasha thing too, so if I got any kind of facts wrong, sorry, ignore them. It'd be really great if everyone could review, to tell me how this was at a first attempt.

I was only expecting this to be about 2-3 pages long, and only about Kagome seeing Inuyasha asleep for once since everyone seems to write about him watching her, but…well…it kind of mutated into this whole drawn out thing about…well, everything. And I really hadn't intended for it to be funny…but I tend to make a joke out of things…and if you didn't think anything in the story was funny, then never mind! Oh well. If you haven't noticed, I have an affinity for ellipses…

Also. I don't know any Japanese. At all. Okay, okay, I know sayonara, arigato, and konichiwa. And domo-arigato, Mr. Roboto (sorry, I had to, I love cheesy jokes and references—Sorry if I offended anyone! Sorry sorry sorry!) And I'm pretty sure I probably spelled those wrong, but, hey, what can you do? But those are the obvious ones that people say all the time. So… please don't get your panties in a bunch if I refer to Inuyasha's coat as a coat instead of a…whatever the proper name for it is.

And I have to get this out there because it's bugging me. Does anyone else think that the whole 'Kagome looks just like Kikyou!' thing is a bit outlandish? I mean, if you think about it, just about every character in the show looks alike. Honestly, if you erased the hair, and you didn't have previous knowledge which ones were males and females, pretty much all the humanoid characters approximated to be around the same age in Inuyasha would look alike, face-wise.(obviously not Kaede or anything like that) I don't know, that's just my opinion. To me, Kagome doesn't look any more like Kikyou than Sango or Kagura does. Heck, _Inuyasha and Miroku_ could even look like Kikyou if you erased the hair!

What's the general consensus, more spaces better? Maybe you guys can give me feedback on that too.

Okay. I'm done with my little blog-like tirade.

Review, hope you enjoyed it!


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